Apparatus and method to generate and access broadcast information

ABSTRACT

The system enables listeners and viewers of a broadcast to access additional information associated with a broadcast. Listeners and viewers utilize a user device to connect to a database containing program descriptions (e.g. audio, text, video or combination thereof) further describing the programming and ancillary information. The database is indexed by the broadcast&#39;s program list or schedule thereby allowing a user of the system to search and select a particular program description of interest. Hearing or viewing program descriptions enables users to preview excerpts and review a broadcast before purchasing an item heard or viewed on a broadcast.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/916,099 filedon Aug. 21, 1997, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD TO GENERATE AND ACCESSBROADCAST INFORMATION, which is a continuation of Ser. No. 08/329,837,filed on Oct. 27, 1994, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,787 entitled SYSTEM FORON-DEMAND REMOTE ACCESS TO A SELF-GENERATING AUDIO RECORDING, STORAGE,INDEXING AND TRANSACTION SYSTEM. This continuation and the two relatedapplications are incorporated herein by reference as though set out infull.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatusto enable a broadcast listener to automatically purchase a music productsuch as a record album, cassette tape or compact disk without theintervention of an operator after hearing a music piece played on aradio station or music television station. More specifically, thepreferred embodiment of the invention utilizes a programmed dataprocessor, a digitally stored audio database containing the names ofmusical artists and groups, the names of pieces which have been recordedon the musical products, musical excerpts of these pieces, and atelephone system to replay this descriptive information through atelephone connection to a potential purchaser. This method utilizes theprogram schedule from a local radio station indicating when pieces willbe played, a digital recording facility to automatically record excerptsof the music pieces played, a telephone system to decode DTMF tones froma touch tone telephone and an interface to a data communications networkfor communication with remote databases and computers.

BACKGROUND ART

[0003] Radio networks offer the most significant marketing medium forthe music industry to create awareness for music titles and artists. Butmusic products such as records, cassettes and compact disks (CDS) areinconvenient to purchase at the time when the consumer has the maximumimpulse to buy, after hearing a musical piece on the radio.

[0004] Additionally, the inability to automate many of the key functionsof a radio based, direct marketing sales operation make it costprohibitive for a single radio station to establish a direct marketingservice linked to the music they broadcast. Station operators offerdifferent programming in each market area making it unsuitable to linktheir stations into a national music retail network. As well, regulatorylimitations curtail the number of stations a radio operator can own in amajor market thereby limiting the number of listeners below the criticalmass necessary to operate a profitable direct marketing music business.

[0005] Radio broadcasters provide no means to fulfill the impulsepurchase nature of the radio business. When a radio listener hears amusic piece they wish to purchase they must listen for, and remember,the artists name and title of the song. In many instances it isinconvenient to write this information down for future reference. Inorder to purchase the music product containing the song heard on theradio the consumer must be further motivated to travel to a music storeto proceed with the purchase process. At the music store the potentialpurchaser must determine if the selected music product is in stock andassess the pricing information.

[0006] The consumer is further constrained because they are unable topreview the songs on the music product they are considering because themusic products are packaged and cannot be played at the store. Thepotential purchaser must remember and continue to be motivated by themusic piece heard on the radio broadcast, possibly from days ago, andhope the other pieces recorded on the album are of sufficient interestto justify the purchase. The inconvenience and inability to sustain theimpulse impetus severely impacts the purchase process.

[0007] Radio networks are unable to capitalize on the direct marketingopportunities they initiate through impulse music purchases because ofthe high cost of creating a direct marketing operation. Coordinating andtracking the music aired with the music products to be sold, recordingof musical excerpts to be previewed, customer service operations andorder fulfillment are all high overhead activities requiring a largededicated staff with a separate skill set than radio station personnel.The cost for a radio station to establish a direct marketing operationfar exceeds the returns from the music selling proceeds derived from asingle radio station.

[0008] Cable television shopping networks have successfully developedlarge direct marketing networks based on national coverage bytelecasting their programming over many cable companies reachingmillions of potential purchasers. Radio station operators are unable tomarket music products in the same manner because station operatorsbroadcast different music programming in each market preventing thelinking of these stations into a common national market.

[0009] Radio is the most widely received broadcast medium throughout theworld. The problems as previously described have prevented radionetworks from being utilized for a mass media, direct marketing, musicretail business.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

[0010] In view of the foregoing, one objective of this invention is toresolve the problems which inhibit the successful development of adirect marketing music business for the radio industry. In this regard,it should be apparent that there exists a need in the art for a methodof operating an automated system which tracks radio audio segmentsenabling radio broadcast listeners to select, preview and purchase amusic product containing the music piece listened to for a radiobroadcast.

[0011] It is therefore an object of this invention to provide anautomated transaction system to record and track radio audio segmentsenabling a radio listener to use their telephone to recall and preview,on-demand, music pieces previously broadcast thereby assisting thelistener in the purchase of a music product such as a record album,cassette or CD. The invention provides the consumer with a timely methodto purchase a musical product by supplying all of the requiredinformation to conveniently make a music product purchase.

[0012] It is another object of the invention to provide a method for anautomated transaction system to service multiple radio broadcastssimultaneously, thereby creating a mass radio audience for the directmarketing of music.

[0013] These and other objects are achieved by a method of and apparatusfor tracking and recording a radio broadcast using a telephone interfaceconnected to a programmed data processor such that when a potentialpurchaser calls a designated telephone number advertised by the radiostation, for example 1-800-RECORDS, a telephone interface provides thelistener with the name of the musical artist and the song titles in thereverse order played during the broadcast, starting with the currentpiece played. The selection, from the current artist played, to themusic product the potential purchaser wants to order, is controlled bythe potential purchaser using the touch tone telephone keys or voiceinput. When the potential purchaser reaches the song and artist ofinterest, further details can be related such as the other songsrecorded on the album, pricing, availability and delivery information.

[0014] The invention can playback through the telephone, on instructionsfrom the caller, excerpts or the entire song, as broadcast over theradio network, to assist the caller with the purchasing process.

[0015] When the potential purchaser indicates they are ready to order,the automated order system obtains the correct name and shipping addressby accessing a name and address database responsive to the consumer'stelephone number or credit card information. The system also records theconsumer's credit card information and obtains credit authorization. Theinvention then transmits the complete order to the fulfillment warehousefor shipment of the musical product to the purchaser.

[0016] It is a further object of this invention to provide a method andapparatus whereby multiple radio stations can be supportedsimultaneously, offering services on a local, regional or national basisproviding the economies of scale and mass audience to support the salesvolume necessary to operate a profitable direct marketing service. Whena potential purchaser dials the advertised number such as 1-800-RECORDSthey are directed by audio prompts to indicate by touch tone entry orvoice input the call letters for the radio station to which they arelistening. The audio prompts are provided by a telephone interface thatis connected to a programmed data processor which performs databasefunctions. The potential purchasers telephone number, input by thecaller or supplied by the telephone company's (ANI) Automatic NumberIdentification service, is compared to all the radio station broadcastcoverage zones offered by the participating radio stations. Thiscomparison determines the radio stations within the broadcast range ofthe caller, providing a limited set of radio stations for the programmeddata processor to sort and search based on the callers input of thestation call letters. The input of the station call letters enables theprogrammed data processor to select the correct station program scheduleand related information. Thus a large number of radio stations,dispersed locally, regionally, nationally and internationally can besupported by one automated system.

[0017] The inventive method also includes the step of efficientlyselecting the correct radio station based on touch tone input. Although,each of the telephone keys 2 through 9 have three related alphabeticalcharacters, callers need only to input four telephone key strokes forthe four station call letters. The programmed data processor onlyrecognizes the input for the participating radio stations broadcastingin the callers area as determined by the telephone number and broadcastcoverage comparison previously described.

[0018] It is a further object of this invention to automate the manualand time-consuming functions. The inputting of the radio station playschedule in advance of the broadcast as well as the tracking of theprogram schedule during the broadcast day requires significant overheadif undertaken manually. As the service expands, and many radio stationsare added to the service, the tracking of the various program schedulesbecomes unmanageable from a manual standpoint.

[0019] One component of the method and apparatus of the invention is asystem for management of the radio station's program schedule. A radiostation's program schedule is produced days and sometimes weeks inadvance of broadcast. The program schedule is organized chronologicallyin the order musical pieces are broadcast and includes information suchas the title of the song, the recording artist and group, as well as theday and time the piece is to be broadcast. A radio station broadcastshundreds of musical pieces each day and the input of the programschedule by an operator is both time-consuming and prone to manual inputerror. The present invention enables the automation of the programschedule input by utilizing a data communications link and acommunications interface such as a facsimile interface to receive theprogram schedule directly from the radio station into the programmeddata processor. The communication interface such as a facsimile board isresident in the programmed data processor and in conjunction with aimaging software, such as a character recognition package, automaticallyinterprets and directly stores the stations program schedule andassociated information on a programmed data processor.

[0020] The radio station program schedule contains timetable informationas well as information describing the music pieces played such as thetitle, artist and group name. The program schedule is accessed by aaudio description creation system which is connected to the programmeddata processor. The audio description creation system creates the audiodescription heard by the caller over the telephone when inquiring abouta particular music piece. The audio description information describesthe music piece outlined in the program schedule and the music productcontaining the music piece, along with other related information such asproduct pricing. The audio description creation system digitally recordsthe audio and is connected to various input devices such as a compactdisc player, cassette player, digital audio tape and a microphone. Anannouncer accesses the program schedule file on a display screen andreads the description information into the microphone creating the audiodescription file for each music piece. The announcer has access toprevious recordings stored in an audio description archive which can beaccessed via a data input terminal connected to the audio descriptioncreation system enabling previously recorded audio descriptions to bereferenced.

[0021] It is another object of the invention to automate the recordingand storing of the music excerpts for the music pieces outline in theprogram schedule. These audio segments can be accessed by the potentialpurchaser to assist in the purchase process and to verify to the callerthey are purchasing the music product containing the music piecelistened to during the radio broadcast. The automated record and storeprocess is accomplished by inserting a signal such as a tone or pulse atthe beginning of each music piece broadcast. A receiver is tuned to thebroadcast containing the music pieces to be recorded and a signaldetector triggers the digital recording of the piece by the programmeddata processor. The music piece is recorded for a specified time such asten seconds providing an audio segment of the music piece.

[0022] Coordination of the audio description file with the programschedule is accomplished through a synchronized time schedule wherebythe program schedule file and the recording of the audio segments on theprogrammed data processor are initiated at the same time. Each station'sprogram schedule is stored in chronological order enabling thecoordination. Another method of implementing the signal insertionenables information to be encoded as part of the selection signal anddecoded into data for use by a programmed data processor. Informationsuch as the program schedule number or music piece number can beincorporated into the selection signal enabling the coordination of theaudio description with the program schedule. Information can be encodedinto the selection signal through means such as multiple pulses orcombination of tones and pulses.

[0023] The invention also provides the information for a potentialpurchaser to automatically order a music product without having heardone of the pieces through a radio broadcast. For instance when thepotential purchaser dials the telephone number a telephone systemaudibly requests the potential purchaser to touch 1 on their touch tonetelephone if they want to order a music piece they have just heardplayed on the radio, or touch 2 if they want to order a music productfrom the automated music catalogue. If the potential purchaser touches 2the invention will then proceed to determine the musical product to beordered by asking the potential purchaser to select the type of musicand to input the artists name or group name using the touch tonetelephone keys. Once the correct artist or group is determined thesystem can reference all the music products performed by that artist orgroup and provide the potential purchaser with the names of the musicalbum and the recording media available such as CD, record or cassettealong with pricing. Further information can also be made available suchas the names of the pieces of each piece recorded on each music productalong with excerpts to preview each song. The invention convenientlyprovides all the information required to make a purchase. Some of thisinformation is not available even at the record store.

[0024] When the potential purchaser indicates they wish to buy aparticular music product the system determines the shipping address andcredit authorization and then places the order for the music productwith the fulfillment warehouse.

[0025] In the case where more than one main artist or group performed ona music product or the purchase process was too complex, the potentialpurchaser can be bridged to an operator who can obtain and input anyrequired data and assist the caller through the purchase process.

[0026] The invention can also be utilized with other broadcast servicessuch as a music television telecast. Viewers of music television programor channel, access the invention in the same manner as previouslydescribed but enter the station designation such as call letters,channel number or advertised pseudo-name enabling the invention torecall the pertinent program schedule relating to the viewed televisionprogram or channel. The audio portion of the music broadcast, would berecorded and utilized to assist the viewer in the purchasing process.The invention can simultaneously support orders originating from bothradio listeners and television viewers.

[0027] Other applications of the invention are also possible. Thebroadcast can consist of content other than music whereby products areadvertised within a broadcast and the invention enables listeners toselect, preview and purchase items advertised for sale over the network.The audio segments for these products would be recorded in the samemanner as previously described for the music pieces and the productswould match the program schedule as input prior to the broadcast.

[0028] The invention also extends to a digital as well as analogbroadcast format whereby the selection signals are digital signalsinserted into the digital broadcast.

[0029] The foregoing features of the invention, as well as theadvantages provided thereby, are explained in greater detail hereinafterwith reference to preferred embodiments illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the self-generating audio recording,storage, indexing and transaction system according to the presentinvention;

[0031]FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a Program Schedule referencefile;

[0032]FIG. 3 illustrates an Artist and Group Name reference file;

[0033]FIG. 4 illustrates the telephone area and exchange code, stationcall letter code and touch tone input database file;

[0034]FIG. 5 is a table and map of North American telephone area codes;

[0035]FIG. 6 is the touch tone telephone keypad lay out; and

[0036]FIG. 7 is an entity relationship diagram illustrating some of theprinciples of the invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0037] In order to explain the present invention in detail, referencewill be made in particular to FIG. 1.

[0038] In FIG. 1, the reference number 1000 designates the radio stationschedule input terminal device located at a remote radio station thatcan communicate with the programmed data processor 1010, located at thecentral site 1025, and input the program schedule of music to bebroadcast on the remote radio station. In the preferred embodiment theradio station schedule input terminal 1000 is the computer system at theradio station that schedules the time of play for both commercials andmusical program content. This terminal device 1000 is equipped with amodem and a communications program so that it can automatically dial thecommunications interface 1050 of the programmed data processor 1010 andinput the program schedule including the artists name, name of themusical piece, and the date and time the music is to be played. Thisinformation can be coded to reduce the transmission time as there couldbe hundreds of music pieces broadcast each day.

[0039] Alternatively the radio station schedule can be automaticallyinput by FAX (facsimile) using a computer or typewritten print out ofthe stations program schedule to transmit the stations schedule from thelocal FAX machine at the radio station to the central site 1025. At thecentral site 1025, the FAX receiver is a FAX board mounted within eithera stand alone personal computer or the programmed data processor 1010that would sequentially provide each incoming FAX message with its ownidentification number prior to storing the FAX digitally on the computersystems hard drive. In the process of setting up the FAX call a handshake protocol is established between the sending and receiving FAXmachines such that the receiving FAX machine can determine, by errorfree data transfer, the telephone number of the transmitting FAXmachine. Alternatively, the station's FAX number can be establishedthrough, the telephone company supplied, (ANI) Automatic NumberIdentification service. The programmed data processor 1010 utilizes thistelephone number as an index to select the optimal algorithm to convertthe FAX images to data. For example, message number 101 assigned by theFAX receiving board is associated with radio station WHAM FM because ofthe stations digitized telephone number received in the hand shakeprotocol. The programmed data processor 1010 then accesses theinterpretation protocol that matches the FAXed data for WTAM FM toconvert the character images sent from the radio station FAX into ASCIIcharacters to be stored on the programmed data processor 1010 in theprogram schedule file 1060. For example, radio station WTAM FM couldutilize a computer printer that produced text in the Roman font. Eachline on their schedule begins with time of play, followed by duration,artist name, then the name of the music piece. A different radiostation, identified through the handshake protocol by their telephonenumber as WPAT AM, utilizes a different scheduling computer to print outtheir program schedule using the Tudor font highlighting the artist namefirst, followed by the musical piece, time of play and duration. Becausethe programmed data processor 1010 knows the identity of the sending FAXmachine it can apply the optimum algorithm to interpret the text fontand determine from the text placement the contents of the page. Thisapproach enables the programmed data processor 1010 to automaticallyfile the FAXed program schedule of the remote radio station in a fixeddigital format in the program schedule file 1060 associated with aparticular radio station. An example of the format to which the programschedule files are processed is illustrated in FIG. 2.

[0040] Alternatively, the terminal device 1000 could be anonprogrammable terminal connected via a network to the communicationsinterface 1050, interacting on line to input the program schedule. Theprogram schedule data could also be input using a touch tone telephonewith voice prompting when connected to the telephone interface 1020 orinput by voice into a section of the telephone interface that recognizedspoken numbers and words through voice recognition. A coded version ofthe radio station program schedule makes the input easier and quicker.The schedule data could also be read over the telephone to an operatorwho would input the data. As this program schedule data is received fromall of the participating radio stations it is stored in the programschedule 1060 of the programmed data processor 1010.

[0041] Music television channels and other telecasters can also utilizethe above-mentioned methods to forward and store their program schedulesfor use by the system.

[0042] The digitized audio description file 1070 is created using theaudio description creation system 1080 which is connected to theprogrammed data processor 1010. The audio description creation systemconsists of a set of audio input devices, such as a CD player 1085,cassette player 1086, record player 1087, audio tape player 1088 andmicrophone 1089 for an announcer to record audio descriptions.

[0043] The audio description file 1070 consists of the audio descriptioninformation describing the music piece and an audio segment consistingof an excerpt of the music piece. The audio description informationcorresponds to the audio recording of the text description of each musicpiece listed in the program schedule stored in the program schedule file1060. The announcer uses the display screen 1081 to recall the programschedule from the programmed data processor 1010 for each radio station.As well, additional information concerning the music piece such as thename of the music product containing the music piece and pricing can beinput into the creation system via the attached data input terminal 1082or personal computer and stored on the audio description creation systemavailable to the announcer for audio recording.

[0044] For example, the station program schedule, after receipt from aparticipating radio station, would be loaded onto the audio descriptioncreation system 1020. The program schedule file 1060, an example ofwhich is referenced in FIG. 2, contains the station code or identifierfor the station 2000, field 1, date and period of the program schedulebroadcast 2005 field 2, number of music pieces in the time period 2010field 3, chronological schedule number 2015 field 4, time of broadcastfor a particular music piece 2020 field 5, artist or group name 2025field 6, title of the music piece 2030 field 7 and the pointer to datafile 2035 field 8. Parts of this schedule information can be coded toreduce the transmission time from the radio station to the system. Forexample, a particular artist or group could be located in a referencetable and related to an artist or group number followed by a music piecereference number. The coded entry would be made in the program scheduleat the radio station and FAXed to the central site 1025. A standardizedreference system could be utilized by all reference table based stationsor different tables implemented for each station whereby the stationreference table conversion is conducted by the programmed data processor1010 when the imaging and interpolation process occurs for incomingprogram schedules.

[0045] For the purposes of recording the music title portion of theaudio description, the audio description creation system 1080 performsan initial sort of the music pieces listed in the program schedules toremove redundant entries for the same artist and music piece. The artistname 2025 field 6 and the name of the music piece 2030 field 7 containedin the program schedule 1060, or the code representing it, is comparedto the data description archive file 1066 containing all previouslistings for which audio descriptions already exist. The announcer isthen presented, on the display screen 1081, with the listings thatrequire an audio description. The announcer then reads the artist's nameand title of the music piece into the microphone 1089 and stores them inthe audio description file 1070 while at the same time updating theaudio description archive file 1084.

[0046] Information not contained in the program schedule such aspricing, album name or other background can be input by the data inputterminal 1082, prior to audio recording, and stored as part of the datadescription archive file 1066 to be included in the audio description bythe announcer.

[0047] The music product containing the music piece outlined in theprogram schedule can then be loaded into its respective player such as aCD player 1085, on the audio description creation system 1080 and theaudio segment digitized, compressed and stored into its associated audiodescription file 1070 while also updating the audio description archivefile 1084. The audio segment can consist of an excerpt of the musicpiece or the entire music piece.

[0048] The announcer would then depress the space bar or other key ofthe display terminal 1082 to indicate completion of that audio input andthe linking of the entry in the program schedule with the correspondingaudio description. The link is made through a database which utilizesthe pointer to data file, 2035 field 8, which is added to each musicpiece in the program schedule and references the corresponding audio anddata description.

[0049] The announcer can then proceed with the next descriptive item ofthat musical product which would be displayed on the display screen 1081for the announcer to record onto the system. This process can berepeated for each piece recorded on the musical product and referencedin the database by product name. Both the audio description archive file1084 and the data description archive file 1066 are automaticallyupdated with the new entries.

[0050] Instead of using a staff announcer's voice to provide the audiodescription it is possible to have the recording artist provide theirown music descriptions on a recording medium such as an audio tape andhave it sent to the creation system site to be input and included aspart of the audio description via the audio tape recorder 1088.

[0051] When the audio descriptions for all of program schedule entriesand potentially for all of the new music products have been processed bythe audio description creation system 1080, the digital audiodescription file 1070 on the programmed data processor 1010 is updatedwith the new audio descriptions contained in the audio descriptionarchive file 1084. As well, the data file 1065 is also updated with thenew files contained in the data description archive file 1066. Theprogram schedule 1060 is updated with the revised schedule containingthe pointer to data file 2035 field 8 linking to the corresponding audioand data description.

[0052] Acquiring the music products and manually recording the musicpieces is both expensive and time-consuming. The system offers a methodfor automatically recording the audio segments of the music piecesbroadcast. This is accomplished by digitally recording the music in realtime directly from the broadcast and storing the recorded segments intothe associated audio description file 1070 on the programmed dataprocessor 1010.

[0053] In the radio industry, recordable media, such as Digital AudioTape (DAT) or digital hard drives are used to prerecord many hours ofmusic for preparation and play by radio stations. The music on thedigital media is prepared in accordance with a station's programschedule. Existing technology enables an audio signal such as a pulse orDTMF tone to be recorded on the DAT and included with the broadcast totrigger remote audio and video equipment. This capability is commonlyused in the radio and television industries to remotely playadvertisements.

[0054] According to the invention, the automated record and storeprocess is accomplished by inserting a selection signal such as a toneor pulse at the beginning of each music piece to be recorded from thebroadcast. In FIG. 1 the receiver 1090 is connected to the signaldetector 1091 which is connected to the programmed data processor 1010.The receiver 1090 receives the broadcast containing the music pieces tobe recorded and a signal detector 1091, when it detects the appropriatesignal, triggers the digital recording of the piece by the programmeddata processor 1010. The recording of the music piece continues for aspecified time, such as ten seconds, providing an excerpt of each musicpiece denoted by the selection signal. The digitizing facility can bepart of the signal detector 1091 or contained within the programmed dataprocessor 1010.

[0055] An additional signal can be included to signal the programmeddata processor 1010 to stop recording rather than a timer basedapproach. Having a signal start and stop the recording function enablesthe entire music piece to be recorded whereby the additional signal isappended to the end of the music piece.

[0056] The real-time recording of the music piece is linked to theprogram schedule 1060 enabling the recorded audio segment to be storedin the correct audio description file. The recording of the music piecesis initially time synchronized with the program schedule for eachstation. A receiver 1090 and signal detector 1091 is dedicated to eachstation requiring real-time recording. Knowing the station code oridentifier that the receiver is dedicated to, the programmed dataprocessor 1010 loads the correct program schedule 1060, for the stationit is recording, based on the station code 2000 field 1, and the currenttime and period of broadcast 2005 field 2. The system clock is used bythe programmed data processor to locate the current music piece playedas indicated in the program schedule, using the time of broadcast 2020field 5. The incoming audio segment, as detected by the signal detector1091 is recorded into its corresponding audio description file 1070 asreferenced by the pointer to data file 2035 field 8 in its programschedule 1070. After the initial synchronization, the recording of themusic pieces into the audio description file 1070 follows inchronological order with the program schedule for that particularstation. For example, if synchronization between the incoming audiosegments and the current program schedule occurred with the first musicpiece listed in the program schedule as indicated by the chronologicalschedule number 2015 field 4, then the next audio segment detected wouldbe recorded into the audio description file corresponding to the nextprogram schedule listing containing the chronological schedule number oftwo.

[0057] When the programmed data processor 1010 reaches the last listingin a program schedule it loads the next schedule for that particularstation and proceeds to synchronize and record when the next audiosegment is detected. Establishing the last listing in a program schedulecan be accomplished in various ways such as comparing the number ofmusic pieces in the time period 2010 field 3 and the chronologicalschedule number 2015 field 4 for the current listing. If the two fieldsmatch the next program schedule is loaded for synchronization with thenext incoming audio segment. Another method of detecting the end of aprogram schedule involves the addition of a delineator at the end of theprogram listing which when reached causes the loading of the new programschedule As well, a delineator signal can be added to the broadcastsignaling the programmed data processor to refer to the next programschedule.

[0058] Specific signals or multiple signals can be inserted for variouspurposes such as to synchronize the program schedule with the automaticrecording of the music pieces. When creating the program schedule thestation can indicate the time of the synchronizing signal and uponreceiving the program schedule, the programmed data processor 1010automatically interprets the signal placement along with the rest of theprogram schedule information. Many stations currently utilize abeginning of the hour signal for advertising purposes and this beginningof the hour signal can be detected by the programmed data processor andutilized to synchronize the program schedule.

[0059] Another method of implementing the selection signaling enablesinformation to be encoded as part of the inserted signal and convertedinto data by the signal detector 1091. Information such as a programschedule number or a music piece reference number can be incorporatedinto the selection signal enabling the coordination of the programschedule 1060 with the recording of the music pieces into the correctaudio description file 1070. The selection signal information can beencoded in the inserted signal through various means such as multipletones or a combination of tones and pulses. For example, when DAT tapesare prepared containing the music for a days broadcast, a signal such asDTMF tones can be inserted prior to each music piece whereby the programschedule number precedes the music piece in the broadcast. For example,the 46th music piece in the program schedule can be preceded by thetones representing a 4 and 6. The signal detector 1091 would detect anddecode the signal and pass the information to the programmed dataprocessor 1010. The programmed data processor 1010 would reference thechronological schedule number 2016 field 4, within the current programschedule and record the audio segment into the correct audio descriptionfile 1070.

[0060] The encoding and inserting of information in the broadcast can beutilized in several ways. A coded music piece reference numberindicating the title and artist name can be inserted into the broadcastand received, detected and decoded for use by the programmed dataprocessor 1010 to coordinate the recording of the audio description andsynchronization of the program schedule.

[0061] In an alternate method of operating the system, the insertion ofthe music piece reference number enables the system to operate without aprogram schedule. The insertion of the music piece reference numberenables the programmed data processor to go directly to an audiodescription without accessing a program schedule. If the music piecereference number referred to an audio description not available on theprogrammed data processor 1010 then the programmed data processor canaccess the audio description archive file 1084 to retrieve theassociated audio description. For operation without a program scheduleutilizing the insertion of a music piece reference number, the audiodescription archive file 1084 can be located on the programmed dataprocessor 1010 to provide more efficient operation.

[0062] The selection signal or other information, can be sent as datawith the broadcast signal through methods such as the side bandfrequency of the broadcast signal or as digital data contained within adigital radio transmission or digital television signal.

[0063] As well, the selection signal can be utilized to pass messages inreal-time to the programmed data processor 1010 such as in the casewhereby the disc jockey at the radio station manually inserts a specificsignal as part of the broadcast. The signal is decoded by the signaldetector 1091 and passed to the programmed data processor 1010, relayingmessages such as, a music piece will be skipped and the next music piecein the program schedule will be played enabling the programmed dataprocessor to skip the next listing in the current program schedule.

[0064] The real-time insertion of a music piece reference number enablesradio stations that conduct live or request radio, to insert the musicpiece reference number preceding or during the music piece broadcast,enabling the programmed data processor 1010 to locate the correspondingaudio description or trigger the recording facility.

[0065] The selection signal methodology also applies in the case of amusic television channel, music video program or a music stationassociated with a television telecast such as provided through a cabletelevision telecast, satellite broadcast or television signalsdistributed via the telephone network. The selection signal is insertedinto the audio portion of the signal and detected and potentiallydecoded as previously described.

[0066] An alternate signaling method enables video information to beinserted and detected as the selection signal. In the case of videosignaling, the receiver 1090 becomes a television receiver and thesignal detector and decoder is a video decoder able to decode theembedded video signal contained within the broadcast.

[0067] The audio description archive file 1084 can be updated at the endof the day or recording period by up-loading the audio segments andaudio descriptions recorded from the broadcast that do not already existin the archive. Music pieces, whether prerecorded when the artist nameand titles are recorded by the announcer, or real-time recorded from thebroadcast, are recorded once and can be referenced in multiple programschedules or multiple times within a given program schedule. Each audiodescription is filed in the audio description archive file 1084contained on the audio description creation system 1080. The audiodescription archive file 1084 enables easy reference and repeated use ofthe audio descriptions. This is significant from an efficiencystandpoint because in most cases a relatively limited number of musicpieces receive the majority of the broadcast play.

[0068] The audio description creation system 1080 is also the means tocreate the area code and call letter file 1075, which when located onthe programmed data processor 1010, is the basis for determining thecall letters of the radio station being listened to by the potentialpurchaser.

[0069] For example each of the approximately 130 telephone company areacodes, see FIG. 5, have less than 999 unique local exchange codes. Eachtelephone exchange code defines a small portion of the geographic areaof the telephone area code that it is located in, such that a specificexchange code can only exist in one city or town for that particulararea code. Similarly, cellular and other wireless telephone servicessuch as PCS (Personal Communications Services) have identification codesrelating to cell and transmitter locations with defined geographiclimits. Every radio station has an area of signal coverage that ispublicly available on maps such that for every exchange code it can bedetermined which radio stations provide coverage within the boundariesof a particular exchange. For example, in area code 519, exchanges 293,526, 765, 773, 565, 644, 523, 228, 482, 233, 234, 237, 268, 762, 235,769, 287, 524, 238, 225, 269, 262, 263, 666, 247, 229, 652, 227, 289,264, 232, 294, 874, 243, 782, 785, 631, 633, 527, 522, 764, 775, 866,245, 296, 461, 693, 768, 236 are located in an area surrounding London,Ontario, Canada and these following exchanges are within the London citylimits 432, 433, 434, 438, 439, 451, 452, 453, 455, 471, 472, 473, 641,643, 645, 649, 657, 659, 660, 661, 663, 667, 668, 672, 673, 679, 681,685, 686 and from these exchanges the following radio stations can beheard CBBL FM, CBCL FM, CIXX FM, CJBC FM, CJBK AM, CJBX FM, CIQM FM,CKSL AM, CFPL AM in London and CHLO AM in St. Thomas and CBEG FM, CHOKAM, CKJD AM, CJFI FM in Sarnia. By organizing this information in adatabase it is possible to determine from touch tone input, the callletters of the radio station listened to even though the touch tone keyshave three alphabetic characters on each key as illustrated in FIG. 6.

[0070] The area code and call letter file and database structure areillustrated in FIG. 4 where the area code 4000 and the local exchangedigits 4010 are the first two data fields followed by a third field 4020which indicates the maximum number of radio stations that can besatisfactorily heard in that area and exchange code. A radio station isdescribed in the next set of four fields which are repeated for eachradio station. 4030, field 4 contains the numeric values of the touchtone keys that match the letters of the radio stations call letters. Forinstance WPAT FM would appear as 9728 where the number 9 is contained onthe touch tone key corresponding to the letters WXY. 4040 field 5contains a 0 if the station is AM station or a 1 if FM. 4050 field 6contains a number 0 to 9 indicating the type of radio station such ascountry, pop or rock. 4060 field 7 contains a pointer to an audiodescription of the station call letters so that the potential purchasercan be prompted with the station call letters combined with the type ofstation in the event the purchaser forgets the call letters. The radiostation call letter fields would be arranged in sorted order to improvethe speed of the retrieval.

[0071] The system would know in advance as part of the database that thefirst two stations listed in the above example, CBBL FM and CBCL FM havethe same touch tone numeric values 22252 and would audibly ask thecaller to select the correct station once it detected this conflict.

[0072] To determine the radio station call letters the potentialpurchasers telephone area and exchange code digits are used as aretrieval key against the area code and call letter file 1075 toretrieve the set of radio station call letters that could be heard fromthat telephone exchange. The potential purchaser is asked to use thetelephone to input the station call letters. The call letter numbersfrom the area code and call letter file 1075 are then compared with thenumeric values of the station call letters input by the potentialpurchaser. If a match is established the system can then proceed todetermine which music has been played on the selected radio station. Ifa match is not found the potential purchaser can be verbally promptedwith the types of radio stations in that area code and exchange, forexample touch 1 for country, 2 for pop, which when selected, will allowthe system to further prompt the potential purchaser with the radiostation call letters that match the selected type of station. If thisprocess does not determine the radio station, the potential purchasercan be bridged to a customer service operator, located at a customerservice data terminal, 1040 to determine and input the radio stationcall letters.

[0073] As well as station call letters, other identifiers can beutilized in place of or in conjunction with the station call letters,for example, a radio station frequency number, television channel callletters, cable or television station number or advertised stationdescriptor. This entails an expanded version of the area code and callletter file referenced in FIG. 4 whereby 4030, field 4 includes thetouch tone numbers for additional identifiers.

[0074] In some cases the station operator may request their own specifictelephone number for their listeners to access the service, in whichcase the called number would identify the station and enable theprogrammed data processor to recall the appropriate program schedule.

[0075] The audio description creation system 1080 is also the means tocreate an artist name archive file 1083 which is updated every time anew artist adds a musical product. This artists name archive file 1083updates the artists name file 1078 on the programmed data processor 1010each time it is updated. The artists name file 1078 contains the touchtone key combinations and other related information for each artist orgroup name. This file is also partitioned into as many segments as apotential purchaser can identify as separate sets or styles of music.For example, 5 partitions can be created by dividing all artists orgroups into the categories of soft rock, hard rock, pop, easy listeningand country. Each of these categories can then be divided into singleartists or groups. Then the artist and group names are converted intothe numeric values of the touch tone keys that match the alphabeticcharacters of their names. For example, the letters A,B,C would all berepresented by the number 2 which is the numeric value of the touch tonekey containing them. A generalized version of this file is described inFIG. 3 where 3000 field 1 contains a number between 1 and 5 representingthe type or category of music. 3005 field 2 contains a 0 for an artistor 1 indicating a group. 3010 field 3 contains the name of the artist intouch tone representation of the ASCII characters of their name. Sincethe characters Q and Z and Space do not appear on the touch tonetelephone keypad the number I is used to indicate either Q or Z and thenumber 0 is used to denote a space. The potential purchaser would beinformed of these keyboard characteristics when prompted to input theartist or group name. 3020 field 4 would contain a pointer to the artistor group name in the data file 1065 referencing the pointers to all themusical products for the artist or group as well as pointers to theaudio description of the artist's name, the names of the artist'smusical products, the various pieces included in the musical productsand musical excerpts of these pieces contained in the audio descriptionfile 1070.

[0076] When the updated program schedule 1060, data file 1065, area codeand call letter file 1075, artists name file 1078, and audio descriptionfile 1070 have been loaded on to the programmed data processor 1010along with the program to initialize and control the data processor, thesystem is ready to receive telephone calls ordering music products.

[0077] Referencing FIG. 1, the potential purchaser uses a touch tonetelephone 1030 to dial an advertised number such as 1-800-RECORDS(equivalent to 1-800-732-6737) to be connected to the telephoneinterface 1020. The telephone interface 1020 uses audio prompts to askthe potential purchaser to use the touch tone keys to input theirtelephone number including the area code. Alternatively, thisinformation can be supplied or verified by the telephone company ANI(Automatic Number Identification) service.

[0078] After receiving the telephone number the system asks thepotential purchaser to touch 1 if they heard the music piece of intereston a radio station, or to touch 2 if they plan to order a music productnot recently heard on the radio station.

[0079] If the potential purchaser touched 1 the telephone interface 1020would ask the potential purchaser to input the call letters of the radiostation to which they were listening, including AM and FM designationsif necessary. Since the basic radio station call letters are fourcharacters and each of the touch tone telephone keys with analphabetical listing contain three possible characters, the potentialfor confusion as to which radio station identifier was input is verylarge. One of the concepts of the invention is to eliminate thisconfusion by using the caller's telephone area code and the mutuallyexclusive exchange code digits. This area and exchange code informationenables the system to determine which city the call originated from andcompare the caller input with a select group of radio station callletters consisting of only the stations participating in the servicefrom that area. The request for the input of AM and FM designationswould be requested when an equivalent set of base call letters, such asWPAT FM and WPAT AM, provide a potential conflict.

[0080] If the potential purchaser cannot remember the station callletters it is possible to use the area and exchange code digits toretrieve station descriptions from the area code and call letter file1075 to verbally prompt the user with the call letters only availablefrom their city. This audio prompting could also include general stationdescriptions such as Country and Western or Rock to help determine theexact station listened to.

[0081] Once the system has determined which radio station was listenedto, the system can search the program schedule for the selected stationto determine the current piece being played and provide the prospectivepurchaser with the first level of description such as the artist's name.Then the telephone interface directs the potential purchaser to touch 1if it is the music piece in which they are interested or touch the 2 keyto hear an excerpt of the music piece broadcast to confirm the musicpiece of interest or touch the number key # on their telephone to jumpto the previous piece of music played on the broadcast.

[0082] With each touch of the number key (#) the system would step backthrough each piece of music previously broadcast or telecast until thepotential purchaser touched 1 to indicate reaching the music piece ofinterest. Listeners can also, through the telephone, enter the time theylistened to a song to speed the retrieve process for those callers thatwere significantly delayed in calling the service.

[0083] Upon reaching the music piece of interest, the system audiblyinforms the potential purchaser of the formats available for the musicproduct selected, such as CD, cassette tape or record album and providethe pricing, shipping and other details.

[0084] The system would then ask the potential purchaser to touch theasterisk key * on the touch tone telephone 1030 if they want to orderthe music product. Alternatively they can press the number key # if theywant more details.

[0085] If the potential purchaser touches the number key # the othermusical pieces on the product would be described and, if requested,excerpts could be played so that the potential purchaser had all therequired information to make the purchase. Pressing the asterisk key *begins the order process.

[0086] When the asterisk key * is pressed to order the musical product,the system would use the caller's telephone number to determine theshipping address. The system accomplishes this by requesting thecommunications interface 1050 to connect to an outside database 1090 toprovide the address associated with the caller's telephone number. Thisaddress could also be obtained from a local CD ROM, attached to theprogrammed data processor 1010, that contains the street addresses forthe respective telephone numbers. If the caller requests a differentshipping address, they can leave a voice message on the audio responsesystem 1025 or be connected to a customer service operator.

[0087] As the address retrieval process is proceeding, the telephoneinterface 1020 audibly requests the purchaser to input their credit cardnumber on the touch tone telephone 1030. The programmed data processor1010 then directs the communications interface 1050 to contact thecredit card issuer 1095 and obtain a credit authorization number whichwould enable the system to subsequently invoice the customers creditcard account upon shipment.

[0088] With the shipping address and credit authorization known, theprogrammed data processor 1010 directs the communications interface 1050to connect to the fulfillment warehouse 2000 and place the order for therequested music product. If the product is not in stock the fulfillmentwarehouse computer informs the programmed data processor 1010 throughthe communications interface 1050 which then instructs the telephoneinterface 1020 to inform the customer of the out of stock condition.

[0089] Once it has been determined that the product is in stock an isplaced with all the information to ship the product and create theappropriate records to invoice the purchaser and record the transactionfor further accounting and statistical purposes.

[0090] In each of these steps, if the caller experiences problems noteasily handled by inputting information via the touch tone telephone thecaller can be connected through the telephone interface 1020 to acustomer service operator, who would obtain the required informationverbally for input into the system via the customer service dataterminal 1040. The customer service operator has complete control of thesession with the caller once the bridge connection has been made. Forexample, the customer service operator, can over the telephone, play therecorded excerpts for the caller, obtain and enter shipping addresses orexplain credit problems. In general the customer service operator is thelast resort when the automatic system is unable to complete the orderprocess.

[0091] The system will also support orders from callers not directed bya broadcast but interested in purchasing a music product. For example,the potential purchaser can initially, upon calling, be prompted topress the number 2 on their touch tone telephone indicating they werenot a radio listener but wished to use the automated music catalogueservice whereby the system would proceed to automatically determine therequired musical product and provide all the information, including theplaying of music excerpts, to enable the potential purchaser to order aselected music album. The system accomplishes this by narrowing thescope of possible music products by first asking the potential purchaserto touch 1 if the artist of group is soft rock, touch 2 if hard rock,touch 3 for blues and touch 4 for country, then to indicate whether themusic product is recorded by a group or single artist. Then thetelephone interface 1020 requests the artists name followed by aterminator key such as the number key #, to be input using the touchtone keys on the telephone 1030. The type of music and the numericrepresentation of the artist or group name is combined together as aretrieval key. Matching the retrieval key with the artists name file1078 provides access to the pointer for the selected artist's name inthe data file 1065. The data file 1065 contains a pointer to theartist's name in the audio description file 1070 for the telephoneinterface 1020 to audibly relate the artist or group name and ask thepotential purchaser to confirm the selection of the correct artist orgroup, using the touch tone keys.

[0092] Once the correct artist has been identified the system retrievesthe names of musical products for the selected artist stored in the datafile 1065 and relates them in the reverse order of their release. Thesenames have pointers to audio descriptions in the audio description file1070, which when played to the potential purchaser, can assist indetermining which musical music product is of interest.

[0093] By using the touch tone keys, the potential purchaser can hearexcerpts from any musical product until satisfied they have all therequired information to initiate the purchasing process by touching theasterisk key *. Once the asterisk key * is depressed the system willautomatically proceed with the purchase process as previously described.

[0094] It is contemplated that a 1-900 telephone number can be used forthe service where the potential purchaser would be charged by theirtelephone company for the telephone call on either a per call orduration basis.

[0095] It is further anticipated that record and music clubs can usethis invention to assist in describing and selling their products. Aswell, record stores can use this invention to allow potential customersto hear excerpts from the musical products over telephone lines. Theseservices could be offered from one central site or through smaller localdistributed systems networked together.

[0096] In both of the above-mentioned examples the music product numberor unit code can be used to access the album index of possible pieces tobe previewed, thereby reducing the retrieval time to obtain the musicinformation required to make a purchase.

[0097] It is further contemplated that specific components of the systemcan be located remotely and networked to provide a distributed approachto reduce communications costs. For example, the telephone interface1020 can contain local file storage capabilities and be located remotelyfrom the programmed data processor 1010 such that the telephoneinterface, and its audible response and preview functions, can belocated in major cities.

[0098] It is further envisioned that the system may provide support fora variety of terminal devices through the system user interface 7012.For example, a multi-media device such as a personal computer may accessthe program list information through a digital interface such as thecommunication interface 1050 thereby enabling access to both audio andtext files comprising the program list information. The personalcomputer communicates utilizing digital data and users select programlist information through keypad commands. The user may be guided throughthe selection process through one of, or a combination of, audio andvisual prompts provided through the personal computer.

[0099] Further, the system includes support for the addition of video tothe program list information whereby the system records, indexes andstores program list information that comprises audio and video content,such as a music video program information recorded from a cable,satellite or digital data network telecast. The video portion of theprogram list information may be recorded, indexed and stored inconjunction with the audio description in the same manner as previouslydescribed. A multi-media terminal device such as a personal computer orinteractive television receiver may access the system through the userinterface 7012 or such data communication functionality may be providedthrough the communication interface 1050 providing multi-mediadescriptions of the program schedule information.

[0100] Having now described the preferred embodiment of the invention,reference will be made to FIG. 7, which gives an overview of some of theprinciples of the present invention. As illustrated, the presentinvention employs data processor 7010 which is provided with a suitableuser interface 7012. In the presently preferred embodiment, the userinterface is integrated with the existing telephone infrastructure, sothat persons may interact with the system using conventional DTMFtelephone equipment, as described above. Connected to data processor7010 is a subsystem 7018 for providing prerecorded program descriptionsof the program material (e.g. recorded music) that the caller may wishto purchase. Subsystem 7018 may be implemented using hard disk storage,optical storage, digital audiotape (DAT) storage, or the like. Theprogram material (e.g. recorded music) may be prerecorded from the mediaplayed over the air, or it may be prerecorded from the live broadcastusing a suitable AM or FM receiver and suitable digitizing (analog todigital conversion) equipment. Also connected to data processor 7010 isa program schedule input system 7020, which may be any suitable meansfor inputting the program schedule or play list identifying what programmaterials have been or will be broadcast, including optical characterrecognition equipment for inputting play lists provided in printed formand telefacsimile equipment for inputting play list information via FAX.

[0101] Data processor 7010 is further provided with a database system7014 for storing the program schedule, suitable data or pointers fromwhich the prerecorded program description may be obtained, reconstructedor generated. A program description subsystem 7016 is coupled to dataprocessor 7010 to provide the selected program description to the uservia the user interface 7012. The program description subsystem mayinclude digital to analog conversion equipment for converting digitallypre-recorded program description information into an analog formsuitable for distributing serially over the telephone. Alternatively oradditionally, the program description subsystem may include synthesisequipment for performing text to speech conversion on text data filesrepresenting prerecorded program description information.

[0102] While the invention has been described with regard to thepresently preferred embodiment, it will be understood that the inventionis capable of certain modification without departing from the spirit ofthe invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method to identify radio or televisionbroadcasts through the combination of a geographic identification codeand a broadcast identifier, comprising the steps of: digitally storingin a database, geographic identification codes associated with an areaor location of a radio or television broadcast signal, said databasefurther storing data representing said at least one broadcast identifierassociated with said radio or television broadcast signal; receivinguser related information, said user related information comprising ageographic identification code and a broadcast identifier; communicatingsaid user related geographic identification code into said database tocreate a subset of data, said subset of data comprising datarepresenting at least one broadcast identifier; and identifying saidradio or television broadcast from said subset of data upon receipt ofsaid broadcast identifier.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein saidbroadcast identifier is input through a touchtone telephone keypad usingDTMF tones.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein said database furtherincludes digital data representing telephone keypad numbers for said atleast one broadcast identifier, wherein said at least one broadcastidentifier comprises or contains alphabetic characters.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, further including the step of generating a second subset ofdata from first said subset of data, wherein said radio or televisionbroadcast is identified from said second subset of data.
 5. The methodof claim 1, wherein broadcaster information of at least one of saidradio or television broadcast signals is indexed by category or grouplisting.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein said database furtherincludes program schedule information for said radio or televisionbroadcasts, wherein said program schedule is accessed responsive to saididentification of said radio or television broadcast.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, further including the step of transmitting program descriptionsrelated to said radio or television broadcasts.
 8. The method of claim7, wherein said program descriptions are transmitted in the ordercorresponding to a program schedule or list.
 9. The method of claim 7,wherein said program descriptions are located remotely and users arelinked to said remotely located program descriptions.
 10. The method ofclaim 7, wherein at least one of said program descriptions is determinedby said geographic identification code.
 11. The method of claim 8,whereby said transmission of said program descriptions is synchronizedwith said program schedule or list.
 12. The method of claim 1, whereinsaid broadcast identifier comprises one of the following, station callletters, a station tuning frequency, a television channel allocation, acable subscriber identification, a music genre, a telephone number, anetwork address, an identification number or a predetermined identifier.13. The method of claim 1, wherein said geographic identification codesinclude or comprise telephone area and exchange codes.
 14. The method ofclaim 1, wherein said geographic identification codes include orcomprise a cable converter addresses or a cable company description. 15.The method of claim 1, wherein program description information orprogram schedule information is contained within said radio ortelevision broadcast signal.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein saiduser related geographic identification code determines an area orregion.
 17. The method of claim 1 wherein said geographic identificationcodes comprise or include identification codes relating to telephoneswitch, telephone cell or transmitter information.
 18. The method ofclaim 1 wherein said geographic identification code comprises orincludes a network address.
 19. A method for identifying a broadcastover a network comprising the steps of: receiving a network addressassociated with a user inquiry; querying a database of stored networkaddresses wherein each stored address or part thereof is indexed to agroup of broadcast identifiers; determining whether said receivednetwork address matches one of said stored network addresses; if one ofsaid stored network addresses matches the received network address,retrieving said indexed group of broadcast identifiers corresponding tosaid network address; and receiving an input signal associated with saiduser inquiry, selecting one of said broadcast identifiers.
 20. Acomputer-implemented information system to identify a radio ortelevision broadcast comprising: a database storing geographicidentification codes associated with a range or location of at least oneradio or television broadcast, said database further storing broadcastidentifiers indexed to said geographic identification codes; an inputreceiving a geographic identification code and a broadcast identifier,said geographic identification code and said broadcast identifierrelated to a user inquiry; and a processor which a) is coupled to saiddatabase and retrieves a subset of broadcast identifiers associated withsaid range or location of at least one radio or television broadcastupon input of said user inquiry related geographic identification codeand b) includes an interface to communicate said subset of broadcastidentifiers, and c) further includes a second input identifying a radioor television broadcast from said subset of broadcast identifiers. 21.The information system of claim 20, wherein said user related geographicidentification code and said broadcast identifier are input separately.22. The information system of claim 20, wherein said geographicidentification code comprises or includes a user related network addressor part thereof.
 23. The information system of claim 20, wherein saiddatabase further includes program description information related tosaid radio or television broadcasts.
 24. The information system of claim23, wherein said program description information is communicated to auser by said interface upon identification of said radio or televisionbroadcast.
 25. The information system of claim 23, wherein said programdescriptions comprises or includes a program schedule or list.
 26. Theinformation system of claim 23, wherein said program descriptioncomprises or includes information relating to an item in a programschedule or list.
 26. The information system of claim 23, wherein saidprogram description information is stored remotely from said system. 27.The information system of claim 20, wherein said broadcast identifiercomprises or includes one of the following, station call letters, astation tuning frequency, a television channel allocation, a cablesubscriber identification, a music genre, a telephone number, a cableconverter address, a network address, an identification number or apredetermined identifier.